In this work oblique TiO2 nanowire arrays (NWs) were prepared by magnetron sputtering method and irradiated by 200 keV Xe ion with different doses. The photocatalytic activity of TiO2 was studied by degrading methyl orange dye (MO) under ultraviolet (UV) light, which indicates that the photocatalytic performance of as-deposited and irradiated TiO2 NWs. It was found that when the dose was relatively low, the Ti3+ content on the surface was increased upon irradiation, dominating the enhancement of the photocatalytic property of the TiO2 NWs. By this means, an optimization of Xe ion dose can largely improve the photocatalytic performance of TiO2 NWs. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.